New Thought
New Thought describes a set of religious ideas that developed in the United States during the late 19th century, originating with Phineas Parkhurst Quimby. Followers of New Thought also find inspiration in the Transcendentalist philosophy, as it was developed by Ralph Waldo Emerson and other 19th-century American thinkers. See also New Thought Movement. From this movement emerged several religious denominations that are actively spreading today, including Divine Science, Religious Science, the Unity Church and the Understanding Principles for Better Living Church, with the largest of these being the Unity Church, comprised of over two million members worldwide. Although Emma Curtis Hopkins, formerly associated with Christian Science, was considered the "teacher of teachers" of several key New Thought leaders, Christian Science developed in a different direction and is not considered a New Thought denomination. There are generally recognized six modern religious traditions in New Thought today: those already mentioned plus the pagan Churches of Huna popularized by Max Freedom LongMartin A. Larson, New Thought Religion: A Philosophy for Health, Happiness, and prosperity. and the Japanese Seicho-No-Ie religion. New Thought religions generally share a core belief in monism, the universal presence of a creative energy, or God, within the world and within all people. Some take literally the Christian teaching that "the kingdom of heaven is within." The central teaching of New Thought is that thought evolves and unfolds, and thinking creates one's experience of the world. The movement places great emphasis in positive thinking, affirmations, meditation, and prayer. New Thought churches often avoid dogmatic pronouncements about the afterlife or other theological questions, and vary in the degree to which they associate themselves with Christianity or other major world religions. However, they generally have been influenced by a wide range of ideas. Although New Thought churches are often misidentified with the New Age movement, New Thought beliefs predate contemporary New Age thinking by nearly a century, and New Thought churches typically do not share major tenets of New Age thinking. New Thought is distinctive from traditional religious movements in that it is expected to evolve and not remain static. Adherents believe that as humankind gains greater understanding of the world, New Thought churches will evolve to assimilate new knowledge. History The following individuals figured prominently in the history of the New Thought Movement: * Phineas Quimby * Emma Curtis Hopkins * Ernest Holmes * Charles Fillmore * H. Emilie Cady * William Walker Atkinson * Myrtle Fillmore * Nona Brooks * Thomas Troward * Emanuel Swedenborg * Christian D. Larson * A.K. Mozumdar There have also been significant individuals through the years who have left their mark on the New Thought Movement as respected authors & leaders: * William Hornaday * Joseph Murphy Contemporary Leaders In recent times, Dr. Wayne Dyer has been described as being in the vanguard of the New Thought movement, along with other popular self-help teachers, such as Deepak Chopra, Neal Donald Walsch, Terry Cole-Whittaker and Rev. Dr. Michael Beckwith. Also, the Australian movie ''The Secret'', touches several core philosophies found in New Thought. Some inspirational speakers interviewed in the film include Bob Proctor, Joe Vitale, Michael Beckwith and Bob Doyle. Footnotes See also * International New Thought Alliance * Association for Global New Thought * New Thought Movement * Metaphysical Bible Dictionary * Home of Truth * Phineas Quimby * Theron Q. Dumont External links *Phineas Parkhurst Quimby *Charles F. Haanel, Author of THE MASTER KEY SYSTEM and other New Thought books General New Thought Links: * Writing & Biographies of most New Thought writers free access * Biographies of most New Thought writers - for the most part may be purchased * International New Thought Alliance * Affiliated New Thought Network * Information and links to New Thought around the world * Addington New Thought Archives * New Thought Centers around the world * Society for the Study of Metaphysical Religion * University of Virginia religious movements page - entry on the New Thought Movement * Emma Curtis Hopkins New Thought Denominations: Church of Truth * Church of Truth / Albert Greer - founded in 1924 Divine Science * Divine Science Federation International * Divine Science of Metropolitan St. Louis * What is Divine Science?/Church List * Divine Science Writings and links * Northwoods Divine Science Resources * Former Northwoods Divine Science Writings * Centro de Recursos de la Ciencia Divina de Lima-Perú (Divine Science in Spanish) Home of Truth * The Home of Truth Religious Science * United Church of Religious Science * Religious Science International * Global Religious Science Ministries Seicho-No-Ie * Seicho-No-Ie Universal Foundation for Better Living * Universal Foundation for Better Living Unity * Unity School of Christianity * Association of Unity Churches * World Federation of Unity Churches * Unity Church of the Hills - Austin, TX Other Major New Thought Organizations * Global New Thought - Serving New Thought Everywhere Global New Thought Groups * Religious Science in Spanish from Rev. Rebeka Pina * New Thought in Portuguese from Rev. Cicero * New Thought in German from Verena Eckerlin - Basel, Switzerland * Centro de Recursos de la Ciencia Divina de Lima-Perú (Divine Science in Spanish) New Thought Churches and Ministries * Modern Teaching of New Thought/Religious Science * Celebration Center of Religious Science * Agape International Spiritual Center * en Portuguese * Religious Science Baltimore * New Thought Indianapolis * Hillside Chapel and Truth Center, Atlanta * Nashville Center for Spiritual Living, Nashville, TN Other Links * Living Enrichment Center * Humanity's Team * New Thought Movement Leader Reverend Dr. Michael Beckwith Free Documentary 'The Secret' as seen on Larry King Live - a great advertisement for a movie! * de:Neugeist-Bewegung ia:Nove Pensamento it:New Thought pt:Novo Pensamento